Twisted neck - repairable?

[Pilgrim]

I have a late 60's or early 70's Kay KB-2 bass. The neck has a V-shaped back and is in good shape, but there's a twist in it. The twist is less than 1/8" from true, but definitely enough to make it impossible to get consistent action on the neck.

When sighting from the nut down the fretboard, the twist is visible as a slight drop on the E-string side.

I'm wondering if it might be possible to correct this twist by removing the neck and clamping it to a stout board like a 2x6 for a few months to true it, or whether the only fix would be to remove the fretboard and plane the neck to true it (which would take more work than the instrument is worth).

I tried searching the forum for comments on this one, but didn't find anything that seemed like a good match.

Thanks........

[Jimbob Jones]

depends on the instrument. Is the neck profile a hard or soft v? post pics if you can.

[Pilgrim]

Thanks - and a good idea to post pix. On returning home and checking the neck, I found that it's more of the "baseball bat" variety. I've had a couple of other Kay basses which had much more V-shaped necks. because of the twist, I haven't handled this one in a few months. I also discovered that it's the LEFT/G side of the neck that's low, not the right/E side. I guess you'd call it a counter-clockwise twist.

Here's a sight over the nut, down the fretboard side of the neck, showing the twist:



Here's a shot down the back of the neck:



And a shot of the neck from the back:



A side profile:



I'll admit this bass is nothing special, but it does sound good and I enjoy playing it as a change of pace. If the neck can't be straightened, I'll keep watching Ebay and looking either for an orphan neck, or for a trashed bass with a decent neck.

[PilbaraBass]

if it were slightly twisted the other way, it wouldn't be such an issue (sort of torzal twist like)...

you could try to twist it back...but I'd do it in baby steps...

first, i'd remove the tuners and detension the trussrod...then I'd use the tuner holes to bolt a strong piece of wood, or bar across it...

next I'd clamp down the body to a bench, and hang some weights off the end of the bar to apply a twisting moment to the neck...

then I'd just wait and see...and just keep checking it...if it doesn't move after a couple of days, add a little more weight...

mind you, it will probably spring back a bit when you remove the weight, so you'll have to overcompensate, I would think.

also, be careful...too much force, and SNAP!...

[Pilgrim]

I'll give it a try! Since I can't play it now, I can be patient as needed with the solution you've suggested...no rush to have it working.

Thanks for the help.

[PilbaraBass]

just thought of something...

to keep the neck from developing a backbow during this exercise, you should support the back of the neck on a pad of some kind near the headstock (around the 1st fret)...

[Greenman]

Originally Posted by PilbaraBass

just thought of something...

to keep the neck from developing a backbow during this exercise, you should support the back of the neck on a pad of some kind near the headstock (around the 1st fret)...

+1 what have you got to lose. Wilser said something about hanging a light bulb near it one time I believe.

[TFG_low_end]

honestly... try everything. You may, in the end, want to just get a new neck.

[Pilgrim]

I may make the question moot - after months of looking, I have a line on a possible neck. I'll keep my fingers crossed. It figures that this would happen when I finally asked the question in public.

[AmazingGracePlayer]

String your E string in the G string's spot for a while, until it untwists.

[PilbaraBass]

Originally Posted by AmazingGracePlayer

String your E string in the G string's spot for a while, until it untwists.

that really won't work very well...the twisting moment is perpendicular to the string, and what is needed is something to counteract this twist directly.